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Chapter Twenty-Five -- The Monk

  1. Good is restraint over the eye; good is
    restraint over the ear; good is restraint over the
    nose; good is restraint over the tongue.
  2. Good is restraint in the body; good is
    restraint in speech; good is restraint in thought.
    Restraint everywhere is good. The monk restrained
    in every way is freed from all suffering.
  3. One who has control over one's hands,
    feet and tongue, who is fully controlled, delights
    in meditation, is inwardly absorbed, keeps to
    oneself and is contented--such a one people call a monk.
  4. That monk who has control over the
    tongue, is moderate in speech, unassuming
    and who explains the Teaching in both letter and
    spirit--whatever that one says is pleasing.
  5. The monk who abides in the Dhamma,
    delights in the Dhamma, meditates on the Dhamma
    and bears the Dhamma well in mind--that one does
    not fall away from the sublime Dhamma.
  6. One should not despise what one has
    received, nor envy the gains of others. The
    monk who envies the gains of others does
    not attain to meditative absorption.
  7. A monk who does not despise what has been
    received, even though it be little, who is pure
    in livelihood and unremitting in effort, that one
    even the gods praise.
  8. One who has no attachment whatsoever
    for the mind and body, who does not grieve for
    what one has not--that one is truly called a monk.
  9. The monk who abides in universal love
    and is deeply devoted to the Teaching of the
    Buddha attains the peace of Nibbana, the bliss
    of the cessation of all conditioned things.
  10. Empty this boat, O monk! Emptied, it
    will sail lightly. Rid of lust and hatred,
    you shall reach Nibbana.
  11. Cut off the five, abandon the five, and
    cultivate the five. The monk who has overcome
    the five bonds is called one who has
    crossed the flood.
  12. Meditate, O monk! Do not be heedless.
    Let not your mind whirl on sensual pleasures.
    Heedless, do not swallow a red hot iron ball,
    lest you cry when burning, "O this is painful!"
  13. There is no meditative concentration for
    one who lacks insight, and no insight for one
    who lacks meditative concentration. One in whom
    are found both meditative concentration and
    insight, that one indeed is close to Nibbana.
  14. The monk who has retired to a solitary
    abode and calmed the mind, who comprehends
    the Dhamma with insight, in that one there arises
    a delight that transcends all human delights.
  15. Whenever one sees with insight the rise
    and fall of the aggregates, one is full of joy and
    happiness. To the discerning one this reflects
    the Deathless.
  16. Control of the senses, contentment,
    restraint according to the code of monastic
    discipline--these form the basis of the holy
    life for the wise monk here.
  17. Let one associate with friends who are
    noble, energetic and pure in life; let one be
    cordial and refined in conduct. Thus, full of
    joy, one will make an end of suffering.
  18. Just as the jasmine creeper sheds its
    withered flowers, even so, O monks, should
    you totally shed lust and hatred!
  19. The monk who is calm in body, calm in
    speech, calm in thought, well composed and who
    has spewn out worldliness--that one, truly,
    is called serene.
  20. By oneself one must censure oneself and
    scrutinize oneself. The self-guarded and mindful
    monk will always live in happiness.
  21. One is one's own protector, one is one's
    own refuge. Therefore one should control oneself
    even as the trader controls a noble steed.
  22. Full of joy, full of faith in the Teaching of
    the Buddha, the monk attains the Peaceful State,
    the bliss of cessation of conditioned things.
  23. That monk who while young devotes oneself
    to the Teaching of the Buddha illuminates
    this world like the moon freed from clouds.

Unknown to many, the original incarnation of The Master from the Doctor Who TV series in Britain was known as The Monk. Our hero arrives in 1066 England, just prior to the Battle of Hastings. The Doctor, --William Hartnell, The First Doctor-- discovers there is someone known as The Time Meddler who is also a Time Lord from Gallifrey. The Monk is this very meddler. He has been using advanced technology to alter battles in history in an attempt to change the course of time. He is eventually killed, and returns in his thirteenth incarnation as The Master in Terror of the Autons. During this time Jon Pertwee, The Third Doctor is the current incarnation.

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